Akerman LLP, a top 100 U.S. law firm serving clients across the Americas, is pleased to announce a three-lawyer team has joined the firm's Franchise and Licensing Practice in Denver. Kevin Hein, Trish MacAskill, and Leilani Argersinger provide strategic guidance to franchisors, licensors, subfranchisors, and dealers regarding a range of legal and strategic business needs impacting their distribution models. The team's experience extends to restaurant and retail development, franchise sales compliance, mergers and acquisitions, compliance with state and federal laws, corporate counseling, and dispute resolution. In his new role with Akerman, Hein will co-chair the firm's Franchise and Licensing Practice.
"Kevin, Trish, and Leilani are strategic advisors with a keen understanding of clients' pressing legal and day-to-day needs," says Jonathan Awner, Corporate Practice Group Chair Co-Chair. "The team enhances our franchise service offering, bringing substantial tactical experience that's particularly beneficial for clients as they navigate the evolving financial landscape impacting their franchise operations."
"I am pleased to welcome Kevin, Trish, and Leilani, who expand our capabilities and expertise with significant industry knowledge and breadth of experience to our franchise team," said Warren Lewis, Franchise and Licensing Practice Co-Chair.
Kevin Hein, Partner
For more than two decades, Hein has focused his practice on counseling companies that rely on franchising as part of their distribution models on a wide range of legal issues, including state and federal disclosure requirements, compliance with state relationship laws, franchise sales compliance, restaurant and retail development, franchising in the health and wellness industries, mergers and acquisitions, corporate counseling, bankruptcy and reorganization, and dispute resolution. Hein's experience in the restaurant industry includes advising clients regarding corporate formation, real estate acquisition and development, leasing issues, corporate financing activities, mergers and acquisitions, dispute resolution, general corporate matters, and franchise relationship issues. In addition, he regularly counsels established and emerging healthcare and wellness clients to ensure their franchise systems and licensing programs are structured to comply with federal and state laws regarding corporate practice of medicine, fee-splitting, Stark and physician self-referral regulations, HIPAA compliance, and other healthcare related compliance issues.
Trish Barrett MacAskill, Special Counsel
MacAskill focuses her practice on franchise and business transactions. MacAskill applies her in-house experience when counseling clients on business, franchising, and licensing issues. She has experience counseling clients on franchise regulatory compliance and negotiating commercial leases and contracts in a broad range of industries, products, and services.
Leilani Argersinger, Associate
Argersinger focuses her practice on corporate transactional law, with an emphasis on U.S. and international franchising and distribution law. She represents emerging and established franchisors in corporate transactions, including M&A, corporate formation, lease negotiation, intellectual property, and capital raising. Argersinger regularly counsels clients on franchise and multi-unit development agreements, franchise registration and disclosure documents, corporate governance and formation documents, purchase, sale, and investment transactions, and franchise law and regulatory compliance matters.
About Akerman
Akerman LLP is a top 100 U.S. law firm recognized among the most forward thinking firms in the industry by Financial Times. Its more than 700 lawyers and business professionals collaborate with the world’s most successful enterprises and entrepreneurs to navigate change, seize opportunities, and help drive innovation and growth. Akerman is known for its results in middle market M&A and complex disputes, and for helping clients achieve their most important business objectives in the financial services, real estate and other dynamic sectors across the United States and Latin America.
The Akerman Corporate Practice Group advises public and private companies, including private equity funds, on M&A, capital markets transactions, financings, and other transactional matters, with a strong focus on the middle market. Akerman is top-ranked nationally for mergers, acquisitions and buyouts: middle market by The Legal 500, is recognized as a leading U.S. law firm by U.S. News - Best Lawyers for corporate, M&A, private equity, securities/capital markets, securities regulation and banking and finance law, and is listed in PitchBook league tables as among the most active law firms in the United States for M&A deals.